Inflation in Japan
Japan generally experienced low inflation from 2013 to 2022, often below 1% and even slipping into negative territory, despite the Bank of Japan's aggressive monetary easing policies. This trend was attributed to a combination of factors, including an aging population, stagnant wage growth, and a culture of price sensitivity among consumers. However, the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic has seen inflation rise to multi-decade highs, raising hopes that Japan may be breaking free of its past trend of persistently low price pressures.
Consumer price inflation in Japan averaged 0.8% in the ten years to 2022, below the Major Economies regional average of 2.1%. The 2022 average figure was 2.5%. For more inflation information, visit our dedicated page.
Japan Inflation Chart
Japan Inflation Data
2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Inflation (CPI, ann. var. %, aop) | 1.0 | 0.5 | 0.0 | -0.2 | 2.5 |
Inflation (CPI, ann. var. %, eop) | 0.3 | 0.8 | -1.2 | 0.8 | 4.0 |
Inflation (Core, ann. var. %, eop) | 0.8 | 0.8 | -1.1 | 0.6 | 4.0 |
Inflation (Core, ann. var. %, aop) | 0.9 | 0.6 | -0.2 | -0.2 | 2.3 |
Inflation (PPI, ann. var. %, aop) | 2.6 | 0.2 | -1.2 | 4.6 | 9.8 |
Inflation falls to lowest level since June 2022 in December
Inflation came in at 2.6% in December, down from November’s 2.8%. December's result marked the weakest inflation rate since June 2022. Accordingly, the trend pointed down mildly, with annual average inflation coming in at 3.2% in December (November: 3.4%). Meanwhile, core inflation fell to 2.2% in December, from the previous month's 2.5%. Lastly, consumer prices fell 0.09% in December over the previous month, a less pronounced drop than November's 0.22% drop.
How should you choose a forecaster if some are too optimistic while others are too pessimistic? FocusEconomics collects Japanese inflation projections for the next ten years from a panel of 49 analysts at the leading national, regional and global forecast institutions. These projections are then validated by our in-house team of economists and data analysts and averaged to provide one Consensus Forecast you can rely on for each indicator. By averaging all forecasts, upside and downside forecasting errors tend to cancel each other out, leading to the most reliable inflation forecast available for Japanese inflation.
Download one of our sample reports to visualize what a Consensus Forecast is and see our Japanese inflation projections.
Want to get access to the full dataset of Japanese inflation forecasts? Send an email to info@focus-economics.com.
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